House stenographer: Holy Spirit moved me

[pintobean]

Last edited Thu Oct 17, 2013, 03:43 PM - Edit history (1)

The House stenographer that took over a microphone and began shouting in the House chamber Wednesday night told a Fox News reporter that the Holy Spirit compelled her to do it.

“For the past 2 and 1/2 weeks, the Holy Spirit has been waking me up in the middle of the night and preparing me (through my reluctance and doubt) to deliver a message in the House Chamber,” stenographer Dianne Foster Reidy told Fox News’s Chad Pergram in a written statement. “That is what I did last night.”

http://www.politico.com/story/2013/10/house-stenographer-holy-spirit-moved-me-98486.html

ETA (thanks to bunnies in post 77) -

Dan Reidy, husband of Hse stenographer Dianne says his wife is a "level-headed wonderful woman of God. I am proud of her."

https://twitter.com/ChadPergram/status/390834973529628672

[spanone]

1. insane in the brain

For the past 2 and 1/2 weeks, the Holy Spirit has been waking me up in the middle of the night and preparing me (through my reluctance and doubt) to deliver a message in the House Chamber,” stenographer Dianne Foster Reidy told Fox News’s Chad Pergram in a written statement. “That is what I did last night.”

i.e. mental illness

[okieinpain]

28. wonder when the spirit will

Tell her to bring her gun and punish the sinners

[yuiyoshida]

129. Who ya gonna call??

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

2. The holy spirit was in bed with her? What did he look like?

[llmart]

61. Well, if he looks like Don Draper......

then I'll start believing

[Tommy_Carcetti]

3. I was watching live on C-Span (no commentary)

And I actually had to rewind on the live DVR a couple of times when I saw that. Wondered what that was about.

[sharp_stick]

34. Me too

I had it on in the background and wasn't sure what I saw at first.

[get the red out]

4. Sigh

I spent a lot of time this morning defending this lady for having potential, treatable, mental illness and now she shows she's just a RW fanatic and likes it that way. Oh well.

[kydo]

7. You are still correct and right to do so

This lady does have a potential, treatable, mental illness only she doesn't know it she thinks it was God.

[HooptieWagon]

8. Its still quite possible shes mentally ill.

Voices in her head are a good indication. Sounds like schitzophrenia.

[AlinPA]

100. Many millions of people hear God talking to them all the time; maybe close to 1/2 of Americans?

[Humanist_Activist]

135. I doubt they mean it literally, and besides that, we hold internal conversations all the time...

internal dialog helps organize thoughts, and even having voices that sound like someone else isn't a sign of being unhealthy, until it becomes pathological. For example, wondering what your mother would say or think about a situation.

For most healthy people, this dialog is recognized as internal, though some may mistakenly believe some of it is external, but in mild forms, such as think Jesus or God is talking to you late at night, or in dreams. Its only when this type of stuff interferes with being able to function in society does it become pathological and you need help. It also can be a sign of some type of chemical imbalance or disorder of the brain.

[Trajan]

9. As a long time atheist

I have considered adherence to theism to be a treatable condition ....

Take some reason, question what others have told you, and call me in the morning ...

[cali]

10. huh? this a textbook indication of spiralling mania

that ends up resulting in full blown psychosis.

could it be something else? Yes. Could she be a right wing fanatic? Her history points to that, but even right wing fanatics with any connection to reality don't flip out on national tv in the midst of Congressional proceedings.

[pintobean]

14. Where's that farm?

[cali]

21. uh, you don't actually think you have any evidence that she didn't

suffer a manic break or some other form of psychosis, do you?

You're smarter than that.

She's on a psych hold.

[Link Speed]

140. "You're smarter than that."

Just another way of saying, "I'm smarter than you".

She should be fired and banned. She is far too crazy to have that kind of access.

[pintobean]

147. I'm smart enough to wait for the facts.

What's been coming out today has been rather enlightening.

She wasn't on a psych hold.

http://nypost.com/2013/10/17/shutdown-hours-made-stenographer-snap-husband/

[treestar]

30. It is true, she's no worse than Michelle Bachmann or Sarah Palin

But Michelle Bachmann was at least elected to a seat in the House and speaks up as that status accords her - the reason this lady is probably mentally ill is nothing to do with her religion and beliefs but everything to do with her thinking the Holy Spirit wanted her to do this particular thing in this particular place.

[BlueStreak]

86. The only difference is that Bachmann is a member

Bachmann could have given exactly the same speech and nobody would have said a thing as long as the gentle lady was recognized for her time.

[dawg]

42. She's probably proud of this, Cali.

She "stood up" for God.

And what she did was perfectly rational if you believe the things that conservatives claim to believe.

We have a really big problem in this country. I live in a somewhat rural area where conservative opinions are dominant, and they are dangerously deluded.

As we say where I come from, "They ain't right in the head."

[cali]

52. if, as I believe, she suffered a manic break

she'll be utterly crushed and humiliated by what she did.

Both dems and repubs in the house who knew her, had nothing but kind words for her and described her as a quiet, good worker and colleague.

No, she wasn't perfectly rational. Rational people are able to understand the ramifications of their behavior. this wasn't like someone who went there to protest and make a statement. she was a long time employee. A rational person would understand that doing what she did would result in precisely what it resulted in- being dragged off and hospitalized.

Her speech was rambling and disjointed.

[dawg]

62. I don't think she suffered a psychotic break.

Granted, she had some sort of a breakdown. I do feel sorry for her, and I hope she gets better.

But I'll bet that when she does get better, she'll still believe the vote last night was a victory for Satan. She may even still believe that the Holy Spirit urged her to speak out.

A significant portion of the people who support the conservative movement are just as detached from reality as she. It is their ordinary state of being, and the Democratic Party needs to recognize that undeniable fact. We cannot make common cause with crazy and we should stop trying.

[LiberalLoner]

102. +1

[steve2470]

96. When I first saw the video, my first impression was a psychotic break

Granted, she's normally this conservative Christian type but her behavior was completely inappropriate with the manic speech.

She HAD to know that she would suffer serious consequences for what she did, "had to know" meaning when she was in contact with reality. If she had mounted a protest after work on the Capitol steps, fine, that's a pretty normal thing to do. She would have not jeopardized her $157,000 a year job.

Now, at the bare minimum, she will be on a probationary status which will include mandatory treatment by a psychiatrist. If she doesn't agree to that, she will be out of a job. There is no way in hell she was in her right mind when she did that. Her behavior was completely different than what it normally is. Everyone was shocked by it. I have to give ol Louis Gohmert props, he was very worried about her (no brains but a big heart per Faux News, yea I went over there).

[ljm2002]

108. That was not "manic speech"...

...it was in fact quite coherent. She wanted to let us all know that it was Freemasons (gasp!) who wrote the Constitution and therefore we are not, and never were, "one nation under god". Well, that is mostly true -- it was not only Freemasons, but also Deists and some Christians who wrote our Constitution. We were founded under Enlightenment principles, not religious principles.

No, she was loud and a bit excited, but neither manic nor incoherent.

Fire her ass.

[AlinPA]

99. Appearing with Fox 'news' makes me think she was giving her message with some forethought.

I didn't see the interview, but the Fox 'news' interview is suspicious. Hard to figure now.

[ljm2002]

107. But she is NOT "utterly crushed and humiliated" by what she did...

...she is instead promoting her reasons for acting in this way, through FAUX NEWS. You are often right but I don't think you are right in this case. I think she is a fundie wacko (and no I don't use this term for all religious folk, not even all fundamentalists) and she knew exactly what she was doing.

Fine, lady. You had your say. Good job. Now pack up your things, you're fired.

[bunnies]

77. Dan Reidy, husband of Hse stenographer Dianne says...

his wife is a "level-headed wonderful woman of God. I am proud of her."

https://twitter.com/ChadPergram

[louslobbs]

143. I'm sure her god could take care of him or herself.....at least from what I know about god, (in my

case I was taught that god was a he), he could simply strike down those he disapproves of with a bolt of lightening, or a heart attack, or blindness, or a stroke, or any combination of those or many other maladies to punish the sinner. Never, not once, did god ever ask for my assistance or help because he just couldn't handle his job as god.

Also, no matter how many times I prayed to god, or begged him for help, not only did I never hear back from him, but he never granted any of my requests, ever.

And finally, not once, did he ever wake me up in the middle of the night to initiate a conversation with me telling me that there was something I needed to do for him, or at anytime, did he ask for my opinion or demand that I help him in doing something that he couldn't handle on his own. It's all just so bizarre, every time I hear one of these fundies claim they talk to god and that they believe that he talks back to them, it sends a shiver of terror down my spine.

Lou

[dawg]

146. "not once, did he ever wake me up in the middle of the night to ..."

Well then you're damned lucky. I've been workin' my fingers to the bone on this fuckin' ark for months now.

[louslobbs]

148. lol, OMG...when's the next 40 days 40 nights rain thingy due? And good luck in advance collecting

2 of every one of gods creations....and may I suggest purchasing some large snow shovels in order to easily remove waste and transfer it to your on board compost heap for easy turning of the pile to produce a nice healthy soil for your gardening needs. Also, avoid taking along any teabaggers, as they are prone to shutting things down and stopping progress.
Lou

[Jamastiene]

63. Are you sure about that?

"...even right wing fanatics with any connection to reality don't flip out on national tv in the midst of Congressional proceedings."

What exactly is it that the Tea Party Republicans have been doing these last couple weeks?

[ljm2002]

105. And her defense of her remarks...

...when talking to FAUX NEWS -- is that indicative of psychosis? I don't think so.

[Trajan]

5. Just what society needs ...

Another holy messiah acting out their hallucinatory fantasies ...

Awesome!

[Barack_America]

6. Hmm, pretty sure that was a manic episode, not the Holy Spirit.

Shame on Fox for exploiting her.

[cali]

13. yep. I'm quite sure that it was mania.

[get the red out]

43. Yes, exploitation at it's finest

If she is on a psych hold then Fox News has jumped the shark with this one and THEY should become the subject of a story.

[jberryhill]

51. Exploiting her?

She was acting in accordance with her convictions, the same as any other disruptive protester.

[Barack_America]

59. This was mental illness, not "conviction".

If Fox is trying to sensationalize her actions as some sort of tea party "victory", that's pathetic.

[jberryhill]

66. Because we don't share her beliefs?

Okay, so, a Code Pink protester shows up at a congressional hearing, puts red paint on her hands, and yells at Condi Rice.

That is rational behavior, but the stenographer's is not.

Explain the difference without telling me that belief in god is a mental illness.

[Barack_America]

74. Because a non-existent entity repeatedly woke her from sleep and commanded her?

She is entitled to her own beliefs, not her own reality. There is a difference in religious belief and religious delusion. Believing in the Holy Ghost, rational. Believing that the Holy Ghost is physically present in your bedroom and commanding you to act against your will and best interests, not rational.

[jberryhill]

79. Saying "religious people aren't crazy unless they actually believe their religion"....

Doesn't sound quite right.

It's like "Christians" who are afraid to die.

The distinction you are trying to draw is what many Christians will tell you is the difference between "mere belief" and "faith".

If you are going to call being touched by the Holy Ghost some form of mental illness, I hope you got a big bus:

[Barack_America]

83. I'm going to call it "delusional". And yes, I realize I am implicating most fundies....

...and am going to need a very large bus (maybe even one big enough to accommodate fervent Fox News viewers).

As for the stenographer individually, it is the description of being woken from sleep by these experiences that makes me suspect mania. As an MD, I have experienced and treated people with mania before. Intense experiences, disruption of sleep-wake cycles, hallucinations, compulsions to "do" something, all textbook symptoms.

[jberryhill]

87. Well, she has a Constitutionally protected delusion

[starroute]

106. The difference is that Code Pink protesters are there to protest

This woman was there as an employee. She both took advantage of her position and violated its norms of behavior. She had to have known she was jeopardizing her continued employment.

If she'd stood at the back of a congressional hearing and shouted something about Freemasons and the Constitution, she'd have been seen as simply exercising free speech rights as a citizen. But she was doing something very different.

[jberryhill]

128. Edward Snowden "was there as an employee" too

[starroute]

137. And your point is?

[jberryhill]

138. Acting on one's convictions is not a mental illness

This woman clearly had the strength of her convictions and acted on them.

Your point was that her employment made things "different" from other protestors.

[starroute]

139. It's not her employment in a narrow sense -- it's her general situation

Snowden planned his actions carefully in advance. He had a specific objective and he set out to achieve it in the most efficient way possible. It's clear that he knew he was burning his bridges behind him and was willing to accept that fact.

Code Pink also plans their actions carefully in advance, know what effect they want to have, and have thought out what consequences they are willing to accept.

The stenographer did none of those things. She may have had the impulse building up for a couple of weeks, but he actions display no planning, no specific objective, and no thought of the consequences. She rushed up to the podium, blurted out something unintelligible, and was hustled away.

In other words, it was a completely meaningless and self-destructive gesture -- and though you don't have to be mentally ill to act in that manner, it certainly helps.

[jberryhill]

145. Have we all not heard what she had to say?

She said that the Constitution was written by Freemasons who are apparently enemies of God, that God will not be mocked, and that this is not a godly country.

She got her message across more clearly than a lot of folks manage to do. I never heard what the Code Pinkers were saying during, for example, McCain's nomination speech. I would guess it was some anti-war sentiment, since that is usually the message they are about in general.

So the difference between "principled protester" and "mentally ill person" is whether or not someone spent two weeks planning it? Heck, by that standard the "Fuck you, Dick Cheney" guy - who jumped on an opportunity - musta been downright crackers!

[pintobean]

60. Exactly. /nt

[Blue_Tires]

11. So she really is nothing more than a religious zealot?

[BluegrassStateBlues]

12. Nutjob fundie confirmed. Can we drop the "have some compassion" bullshit now?

Do I have permission to point and laugh yet?

[cali]

17. no. you can be a right wing fundie and have a manic break.

She's in hospital undergoing a psych evaluation. Odds are great that she's on a psych hold and depending where she is, the odds are good that that hold will either be extended or that she'll agree to voluntary inpatient treatment.

[dorkzilla]

47. I might be missing something...

I'm not being cheeky or anything but if she's on a psych hold how did she get on Fox? I realize that Fox *is* an asylum, but I thought I read she was given a psych eval directly after the incident last night.

Was she released already?

[cali]

54. she wasn't on fox last night. and no, she hasn't been released

reports are that she was taken to the hospital for a psych eval. In DC that means a 48 hour hold.

[dorkzilla]

64. Ah, thanks for clearing that up.

She certainly sounds ill, I feel badly for anyone suffering with mental illness. When I was a teenager, my best friend was acting bizarrely, getting increasingly worse over time, but suddenly was convinced that she was not only Cupid (her birthday was 2/14) but also the daughter of Jesus Christ. It was incredibly sad.

[muriel_volestrangler]

119. We now know she was released some time ago

October 17, 2013 | 5:28pm

Dan Reidy told The Post Thursday that his wife, Dianne, was plagued by sleeplessness since the start of the shutdown Oct. 1.
...
Dianne Reidy was present sporadically during the half-hour interview, but spoke only briefly towards the end.

“I’ve never felt better,” she said, “I’m glad that I fulfilled God’s mission for me, absolutely. It lifted a tremendous burden. It was a very hard burden to carry as you can imagine.”
...
After her bizarre behavior , she was taken to George Washington Hospital and spoke to a psychiatrist, then released.

http://nypost.com/2013/10/17/shutdown-hours-made-stenographer-snap-husband/

So she certainly wasn't kept in for 48 hours; she may not even have been kept in overnight.

[dorkzilla]

141. Okay so she's just a religious nut job.

Sympathy gone.

[jberryhill]

53. She did this deliberately, and out of her professed convictions

Would you suggest that Code Pink disruptors also be held for such reasons?

[bunnies]

84. And now her hubby is coming out to say how proud he is of her.

I shit you not.

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/trending/VIDEO-House-stenographer-loses-it-during-House-vote-rants-about-God-Freemasons.html

[tkmorris]

90. She heard voices in her head

That's the difference, like it or not. If someone from Code Pink had pulled one of their stunts and then claimed that the ghost of Genghis Khan had appeared to them, commanding them to do so, I'd support a psych hold of them too.

[jberryhill]

97. Yeah, so, how do you expect people to hear God?

You only think it's crazy because God hasn't said anything to you yet.

[Logical]

151. Admit it, she is just a right wing nut, not mentally insane. Admit you are wrong on this. nt

[pintobean]

153. I don't think that's going to happen

It appears that cali dropped out of the conversation when actual facts started rolling in.

[okieinpain]

68. yeah she knew what she was doing. surprised

She didnt throw a Obama is the devil in there.

[ljm2002]

109. Yes you have my permission to point and laugh...

...regardless of all the armchair diagnoses here, she knew what she was doing IMO and her statement today reinforces that.

Well at least she has the courage of her convictions. She'll need it, now that she'll be losing that nice paying job. Hopefully.

[ScreamingMeemie]

149. Many people thought Andrea Yates was a "nutjob fundie" before...

...and her husband was her biggest fan, as long as she kept being a good Christian woman by having his children.

[wendylaroux]

15. Holy Shit

someone help these people.

[riqster]

33. Holy Shit is what she said last night nt

[wendylaroux]

44. You are correct!

And a holy shit is what I feel like taking, listening to these people.

[Ichingcarpenter]

16. I told you so

She is what she reads and supports on her facebook

Now about that outburst I've seen it before and spoke about it earlier

Here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=3870047

[cali]

39. sorry, this is supporting evidence for spiraling mania

that resulted in a manic break.

[Ichingcarpenter]

65. I'm afraid your psycholgical diagnosis is lacking my friend

Some key facts about her outburst.
It was coherent in the parameters of her religiosity and convictions.

Of course her fatigue could have triggered the outburst but not the content of her message.


Her religious fanaticism I've seen in churches and families which we could describe as sickness, but quite normal to them. i would diagnose her with fatigue but not any mental illness which is one for the books.

[deutsey]

81. If a post upthread about her husband is true,

he's apparently proud of what she did.

[Stallion]

18. Meet Your New CBN C-Host

nm

[frylock]

19. the holy spirit wakes me in the middle of the night so that i can take a piss

[BluegrassStateBlues]

24. My bursts of laughter over this situation are directly from the holy spirit. nt

[RagAss]

111. HAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA !!!!!!

[Xipe Totec]

20. We'll need an old priest and a young priest. nt

[KansDem]

22. Well, there's the problem!

She shouldn't be in the House; she should be on a flight to Tampa!

[TeamPooka]

23. So it was a premeditated act. Thank you for the confession. Now prosecute her.

If that sounds harsh to you, if any other citizen did that would they be prosecuted or fined?
What would happen to them?

[cali]

26. you don't know anything whatsoever about bi-polar illness do you?

or any mental illness at all.

Guess what? People who are severely psychotic are capable of what you're terming premeditation.

this isn't rocket science.

I'm shocked by how dang blasted ignorant so many here are when it comes to MI.

[TeamPooka]

38. alleged mental illness.

[RKP5637]

41. Well said. There are definitely some mental issues going on to elicit this

impulsive behavior such as this IMO.

[tavernier]

122. As a nurse, I know all about MI

It's a myocardial infarction, otherwise known as a heart attack.

What this lady has is BSC, otherwise known as bat shit crazy.

[Logical]

152. LOL, this is getting old. nt

[1000words]

25. The Holy Spirit moved you to the unemployment line.

Good luck.

[cali]

27. What makes you think she's been or will be fired?

[1000words]

29. By every right, she should.

[cali]

35. so if it's established that she was suffering a manic break

or some other form of psychosis, you think she should be fired?

Nice.

[1000words]

67. As stenographer, it is vital that she record proceedings accurately

Until the Holy Spirit ceases to motive this woman to action, she is not qualified to execute her job.

[kestrel91316]

82. You think a delusional mentally ill person should be allowed to work anywhere near our elected

officials??

She's not the only one who needs her head examined.

[Gore1FL]

69. I'd rather see her hospitalized and treated n/t

[1000words]

73. If she is ill, of course.

If her outburst is the result of the inability to refrain from introducing religious rhetoric into governmental proceedings, she should find other work.

[Gore1FL]

78. Point

I'd agree she should probably find another position at this point, too--even if she remains with the government. She might want to run as a Tea Party candidate.

[TwilightGardener]

31. I would be pretty pissed at the Holy Spirit, myself. There's nothing that important

that it can't wait until morning.

[Quayblue]

49. lol

[Hell Hath No Fury]

32. Extreme religiosity + sleep deprivation....

Not a good combo.

[Stallion]

36. More Likely Headed to the Christian Gravy Train

every Evangelical TV show in America will have her as a guest

[RKP5637]

37. A psychiatrist can help with impulsive delusional behavior, god words will not

get one a free pass to disrupt in session congressional activities.

[VanillaRhapsody]

50. Thankfully she has Obamacare now!

many seriously mentally ill folks have religious based delusions about themselves!

[RKP5637]

58. We've seen that so many times, identification with god/religion delusionally giving one

a sense of empowerment of being special in the scheme of life ... and sometimes to persecute others.

[VanillaRhapsody]

71. and they gravitate towards the Republicans because..

they desperately need to see others suffering more than they are in order to feel good about themselves...it is really sick.

[RKP5637]

120. Definitely, very very sick. n/t

[Bolo Boffin]

40. The spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets.

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Cor++14:32

This wasn't the Old-Time Gospel Hour, ma'am. It was the US House of Representatives. Control yourself.

[ehrnst]

45. Good for you it wasn't Allah, lady. You'd be lynched by the GOP... (nt)

[bunnies]

46. wow.

Thats incredibly unnerving.

[VanillaRhapsody]

48. This is their whole "speaking in tongues" mentality...

[backscatter712]

55. Show me on the doll where God touched you... n/t

[Lex]

70. Bwahahaha.

[nolabear]

56. Poor woman. I think the case for mania resulting in a psychotic break is strong.

I know and have treated some of the finest people I've ever met who can become passengers on that wild horse. I'd advise against being in any way smug about something you can't even vaguely comprehend.

[ljm2002]

114. OFFS...

...many of us here can comprehend mental illness, and not vaguely either -- you are not the only person here who has dealt with it in real life.

Look, there are obviously some different perceptions of this incident. But please try and refrain from condescension on the topic.

[nolabear]

121. Well I guess I wasn't talking to you and those people then, was I?

I've got no premium on comprehension, but I do see a whole lot of abuse being heaped on that woman here, and I object to it. If you're not one of the people doing it, then don't take it on.

[ljm2002]

123. Do you know pintobean personally?

Because your reply stated that pintobean should not be "smug about something you can't even vaguely comprehend". IOW you were stating this poster can't even vaguely comprehend mental illness, even though you can't even vaguely KNOW that, unless you know the poster personally.

And please, don't condescend. Such as: "If you're not one of the people doing it, then don't take it on." Sorry you don't want to be challenged, but this is an open discussion board and I am free to remark on anyone's comments, whether they were directed at me or not. In this case, you are but one of many posters here whose response to those of us who do not buy the "psychotic break" theory is, essentially, "Well you obviously know nothing about mental illness, and how dare you abuse this poor woman."

This woman brought the reactions on herself. She chose to make her statement, and she chose to email FAUX NEWS today to reiterate what she said. So yes, I remain in the camp that believes she did not have a mental breakdown. IMO she just could not contain herself any longer, she had to let us infidels know the TRUTH.

I sincerely hope she loses her job over it.

[pintobean]

124. I didn't take that as being directed at me

since I didn't give an opinion in the OP. When someone wants to address everyone, or just state their view, they usually reply to the OP.

[nolabear]

126. Thanks, Boss. It wasn't.

[ljm2002]

127. Upon re-reading the OP, I agree with you...

...it does not appear to be directed at you since you made no comment one way or the other in your OP.

[nolabear]

125. Fine. Mentally ill people don't email news channels. But you're right. I don't know her.

If you want to paint me as the one who's condescending, so be it. I wasn't addressing you, I didn't start a conversation with you, and you're the one who, yes, took it on.

But you do have a point in that this whole thing is academic at best. We don't know one another, I don't know pintobean (with whom I have no beef and often have fine interactions), neither of us knows her, and if you are offended by my defense of a person whose behavior suggests impairment then so be it. I'm comfortable with my comment.

[ljm2002]

132. Once again:

Whether you were addressing me or not is 100% immaterial. This is a discussion board. There is no rule that says I may not speak unless spoken to. Sorry if the format bothers you, but there it is.

Anyway, since your remarks appear to be more general than I thought -- i.e., since pintobean did not make any remarks one way or the other, just cited a couple of articles about it -- that means you were not addressing pintobean directly but painting with a broader brush, implying that all of us who disagree with you in this instance don't have even a vague idea of what mental illness is about.

BTW I am NOT offended by your defense of the woman. It's very apparent that many of us see it one way, and many see it the other way. I am fine with that. But I AM offended by your statement about smugness, and not being able to even vaguely understand mental illness. With that statement you set yourself apart as someone who DOES know about such things, and the rest of us who disagree with your assessment as people who obviously DO NOT know about them. You can't know that and your assumption is, yes, condescending.

TTFN

[lumberjack_jeff]

57. I'd go nuts too, if my job was to type that shit. n/t

[Divine Discontent]

72. hahahaha... exactly, imagine typing all that crap those teanuts blather on about?

her over emotional ranting (accurate or not) and choice of doing so seem no different than Bachmann's speeches. lol...

[arely staircase]

116. + 1

[Iggo]

75. And I have to respect that?

[Ligyron]

76. Listen

I don't go in for any religious crap myself (except when I need a good laugh), but maybe we should see what the psych eval produces first before firing or prosecuting her. Meanwhile, I DID get a good laugh ... bwahhhaa

[kestrel91316]

80. And when the "holy spirit compels her to bring a gun into the House and shoot

some Democrats, she'll obey again.

She is a huge security risk and must never be allowed on government property again, let alone into a legislative body.

[kestrel91316]

85. Dan Reidy, husband of House stenographer Dianne says his wife is a "level-headed wonderful woman

of God," per Chad Pergram on Twitter.

She's just your average christofascist. We're lucky she didn't bring a gun to work.

[bunnies]

88. Yep. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Been trying to spread this around. Really gives us some perspective.

Heres a link: http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/trending/VIDEO-House-stenographer-loses-it-during-House-vote-rants-about-God-Freemasons.html

[pintobean]

92. I added your info to the OP

thanks

[pintobean]

89. Can you let up on the gun crap?

There's no gun in this story. The Holy Spirit is unarmed.

[BluegrassStateBlues]

91. Are we sure the Holey Spirit is unarmed or didn't draw quickly enough? nt

[kestrel91316]

95. No. These people want liberals dead. She might just as easily have decided

that Gawd wanted her to shoot somebody.

[tularetom]

112. Is "level headed woman of God" an oxymoron?

She may very well be a woman of God (whatever the hell that means), but after watching her little performance I don't think anybody could call her level headed.

Then again, maybe he's describing her literally.

[napkinz]

118. does the majority party hire such people?

Someone else posed this question.

I was hoping someone would provide an answer.

(The thinking being the House fundies would hire one of their own.)

[kestrel91316]

131. Hell yeah. I'm thinking it's probably a job qualification. They're probably all just like her.

The entire House Republican staff roster is probably full of them.

[pintobean]

134. Been there 8 years

His wife has worked at the Capitol for more than eight years, and has been a stenographer for almost two decades, also working in D.C. courts.

http://nypost.com/2013/10/17/shutdown-hours-made-stenographer-snap-husband/

[ScreamingMeemie]

150. Andrea Yates' husband thought she was pretty special too... nt

[frogmarch]

93. She sounds like my fundie sister-in-law.

She’d do the very same thing the House stenographer did if she had the chance. The holy spirit talks to my sister-in-law too, and one of the things it tells her is to keep working on mr. froggy and me until we cast the demons of atheism from our souls and accept jayzus as our savior. She disrupts not only family gatherings with her religious rants, but public ones too, and singlehandedly brought down our local book club.

My sister-in-law is just a "normal," everyday fundie. I don’t consider her any wackier than the rest of them are.

[n2doc]

94. I'm not going to feel sorry for her

1. As a certified(tm) religious wackjob (old testament variety), she has permanent job security.
2. Watch for her upcoming book and booktour on Fox, Rush, Hannity et al.
3. She will be praised for her misbehavior, and probably given a raise.

Now, imagine the reaction to her if she had run around yelling "ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn!"....

[The Straight Story]

98. If she had been running around saying that, I would vote for her

(Note my avatar)

[MNBrewer]

101. So she hasn't had a psychotic break, she's just religious.

Sheesh!

[JoePhilly]

103. *** Breaking News *** ... She's running for Michelle Bachmann's seat.

[SamYeager]

104. Religions have been exploiting the mentally ill for millenia

She was "possessed of the Holy Spirit".

Others are "Demon possessed".

How the religion paints it all depends upon how the psychosis manifests.

[RagAss]

110. Where the Fuck is Jim Jones when we need him ?

[scheming daemons]

113. soo... she is a christian fundamentalist whack job

And not mentally ill.

She's a woman of God, according to her husband... and he is proud of her.

Compassion from this morning is wasted.

Fire her at least, and prosecute her at most.

[tanyev]

117. That's funny, fundie extraordinaire David Barton insists that the Constitution is Biblical.

Maybe he's got a different Holy Spirit talking to him.

David Barton says Americans have been misled about their history. And he aims to change that.

Barton has collected 100,000 documents from before 1812 — original or certified copies of letters, sermons, newspaper articles and official documents of the Founding Fathers. He says they prove that the Founding Fathers were deeply religious men who built America on Christian ideas — something you never learn in school.

For example, you’ve been taught the Constitution is a secular document. Not so, says Barton: The Constitution is laced with biblical quotations.

“You look at Article 3, Section 1, the treason clause,” he told James Robison on Trinity Broadcast Network. “Direct quote out of the Bible. You look at Article 2, the quote on the president has to be a native born? That is Deuteronomy 17:15, verbatim. I mean, it drives the secularists nuts because the Bible’s all over it! Now we as Christians don’t tend to recognize that. We think it’s a secular document; we’ve bought into their lies. It’s not.”

http://www.theamericanconservative.com/dreher/david-barton-christianizing-history/

[Pakhet]

142. So the constitution is biblical

But feeding the poor isn't. Got it. I don't know how these people live with themselves.

[lunasun]

130. so cra cra.

[Iggo]

144. Totes cra cra.

[vi5]

133. Sorry, I thought by House Stenographer

I figured you meant David Gregory, or Chuck Todd, or someone of their ilk.

[HockeyMom]

136. There are still stenographers?

I though that went the way of manual typewriters. Damn, I could be working for government still?????